was injured 1:43 into the second.

was injured 1:43 into the second.

SEATTLE -- The guitar riffs ripped from the hotel ballroom where owner Paul Allens band was performing and filled the lobby. Down on the lower level, Hall of Famer Walter Jones posed for pictures with exuberant fans. This celebration in the wee hours of Monday morning was what Pete Carroll envisioned when he arrived in Seattle in January 2010 and was finally given the full say over an NFL franchise in the hopes of replicating at the professional level what he was able to accomplish in college. Celebrating was standard practice when Carroll was at USC. But the party that followed Sundays 43-8 blowout of Denver that gave Seattle its first NFL title topped all those previous celebrations. It may just be the beginning for the Seahawks. "This is exactly what we envisioned from day one. We were going to be right here and win this football game -- and it just happened to be in New York. which makes it even more special -- in the fashion that we were able," Carroll said. "We deserved it and we earned it because this is exactly what weve been preparing for, and we expected it. That may sound cocky. That may sound arrogant. But its a mentality you cant get in one week." Seattles coronation was the culmination of an overhaul that Carroll and general manager John Schneider embarked upon when they took control of the Seahawks. Nearly 1,000 roster moves later, they could finally take the ultimate satisfaction in what they had created: the envy of the NFL. The Seahawks are mean and talented on defence. They have one of the most dynamic young players in the game in quarterback Russell Wilson. And the surrounding cast complements him well. There is very little indication this will be a one-year flash. "One of the things that happens every so often is teams have a big fallout after they win the Super Bowl," Carroll said. "Were not in that situation." Seattles title will be remembered for a dominating defence that will be regarded among the best in league history. Richard Shermans play at cornerback -- and sometimes his mouth -- drew the attention but that defence was far more than Sherman and his "Legion of Boom" teammates in the secondary. Linebacker Bobby Wagner was even better in his second season, while Super Bowl MVP Malcolm Smith was called upon to play different positions throughout the season. The signings of Cliff Avril and Michael Bennett on the defensive line, and the re-signing of Clinton McDonald after Week 1, gave the Seahawks the deepest defensive line rotation in the league, all with plenty of energy to chase Colin Kaepernick in the NFC title game and harass Peyton Manning in the Super Bowl. Offensively, the Seahawks were without their top two wide receivers for most of the season between Percy Harvins preseason hip surgery and Sidney Rices midseason knee injury. But Harvin showed just why the Seahawks made the investment with his 87-yard kickoff return touchdown that was essentially the final blow in the Super Bowl. Golden Tate and Doug Baldwin believed they were disrespected all season and were intent on proving critics wrong. For the most part, they did, while Jermaine Kearse continued to play the role of another undrafted gem discovered by Schneider. The offensive line missed both starting tackles -- Breno Giacomini and Russell Okung -- for more than half the regular season due to injuries but managed. And Marshawn Lynch continued to go "Beast Mode" at just the right times. Seattle should be able to keep its core together but there will be difficult decisions to make. There are key free agents, including Baldwin and Tate. There are also potential salary cap decisions to be made with players like Rice, Zach Miller, Chris Clemons, Brandon Mebane and Red Bryant. Then there are the two looming extensions that could get done this off-season -- Earl Thomas and Sherman. Both players can be extended before the start of next season, but the likelihood is that Seattle tries to get a deal done with Thomas first and then see if an extension will work for Sherman. So far, Sherman has been the ultimate bargain for Seattle, scheduled to make less than $700,000 in base salary next season. Thomas and Sherman are entering the final year of their rookie contracts in 2014 and with both now two-time All-Pro selections, each is likely due a hefty raise. If Seattle can get both extensions done, it would allow them to focus on Wilson during the 2014-15 off-season when his rookie deal can be redone. "We are looking two to three years ahead so last year we knew we were going to have some things coming and how to handle certain players and to know just where we are headed," Schneider said recently. "We put different models together. Matt Thomas does a phenomenal job with it. Figure out the best way to navigate it. They are really good problems to have." Nike Roshe Run Women Sale . It apparently hasnt impressed Chicago very much though. The White Sox will try to post their longest winning streak at Fenway Park in 52 years as they continue a three-game series with the Red Sox this evening. Nike Free 5.0 Womens Running Shoes . He will report to minor league spring training with Toronto next month. Scoma, 26, finished third in the American Association last season with a . http://www.ukshoesaleoutlet.me.uk/air-max-95/air-max-95-women-s.html .ca Fantasy Editor Scott Cullen and NFL Editor Ben Fisher discuss three hot fantasy football topics. Nike Free 5.0 Flyknit 2015 . Louis, MO (SportsNetwork. Nike Air Max 2015 Womens Uk . -- Amid stories about Jeremy Lin and the upcoming all-star game, the Detroit Pistons have quietly become one of the hottest teams in the NBA. UNIONDALE, N.Y. -- While the Pittsburgh Penguins were trying to chase down the New York Rangers, they seem to have overlooked the New York Islanders. Pittsburgh has been trying to catch the Eastern Conference-leading Rangers, and a monthlong stretch in which they barely lost got them within one point with a whole lot of momentum. A home-and-home set with the also-ran Islanders seemed to be the perfect tonic to keep the Penguins rolling, but the Penguins failed to take advantage. After sustaining a rare loss to New York in Pittsburgh on Tuesday night, the Penguins did little to change their fortunes in the rematch and were beaten 5-3 on Thursday night. Now Pittsburghs hopes of finishing first are nearly gone. The Penguins trail the Rangers by five points with five games remaining, and New York owns the tiebreaker. Of bigger concern is the Philadelphia Flyers, who are only two points behind Pittsburgh in the race for home-ice advantage in what is shaping up to be an all-Pennsylvania matchup in the first round. "Were in Buffalo (Friday), and we have big games with Philly, New York, Boston and Philly again," Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said. "Were going to try to win every one of those games." Josh Bailey had two goals and three assists, after setting up three goals in the Islanders win at Pittsburgh on Tuesday, and carried the New York offence that is usually fueled by top-line forwards John Tavares and Matt Moulson. That duo was a combined minus-2 on Thursday, but it didnt matter. Secondary scoring from the line of Bailey, Kyle Okposo and Frans Nielsen made the difference in the back-to-back 5-3 wins. "As a line I thought we played pretty well and found a way to get some goals," Bailey said. "Its resulted in our team getting a couple of extra wins and takes some pressure off the top line." The Islanders (33-33-11), in a 12th-place tie in the 15-team Eastern Conference, took pride in their fight down the stretch and their accomplishment of getting back to .500 New York is playing the spoiler role to the hilt, and in turn helping out the hated Rangers. "We always play to win, no matter where we are in the standings," said Okposo, who reached 20 goals for the first time. "We always play with pride. I think the last two games definitely showed that." The night was already going badly for the Penguins when captain Sidney Crosby left in the second period after he was struck in the nose by a puck and was bloodied. Crosby has missed significant time because of concussion troubles, but he was able to return shortly after. He didnt need stitches, but he sounded very congested when he spoke after the game. However, the result seemed to bother him more than the injury. "We didnt do a lot of good things and we paid for it again," Crosby said. "We made some mistakes and they capitalized on it." The Penguins, who hadnt lost consecutive games in regulation since Jan. 10-11, are trying to finish first to avoid being no better than the No. 4 seed in the East. "We have to find ways to get back on track," forward Jordan Staal said. "Its going to takee everyone in the room.dddddddddddd" Marty Reasoner gave the Islanders a 1-0 lead with his first goal in over a year, and Pascal Dupuis got the Penguins even in the second with a short-handed goal while Crosby was in the dressing room for repairs. When Crosby got back to the bench and then on the ice, the Islanders took over again. Okposo scored a power-play goal when his centring pass intended for Nino Niederreiter caromed into the net off defenceman Deryk Engelland with 3:24 left in the period. Bailey pushed the lead to 3-1 exactly 2 minutes later when he scored on a short-handed breakaway. Bailey starred in this two-game series, notching a career-best three assists in each game and helping the Islanders snap the Penguins 10-game, home-winning streak with their first win in Pittsburgh in more than four years (0-11-2). "I dont see the opponent being the demoralizing part," Bylsma said. "I didnt see a lot of response in the way we played." Okposo added his second of the night at 5:52 of the third off a feed from Bailey. Al Montoya made 26 saves. Evgeni Malkin cut it to 4-3 with 1:31 remaining after goalie Marc-Andre Fleury was pulled for an extra skater, but Bailey added an empty-netter with 4.7 seconds left. Pittsburgh, which recorded 54 shots in Tuesdays loss, held a 29-24 edge Thursday. The Penguins were recently rolling and cementing themselves as the popular choice to be this years Stanley Cup champion. But sudden struggles, coinciding with the Rangers getting back on track, have stunted Pittsburghs surge. The Penguins went on a 13-0-1 spurt, but are 1-3 since. The Islanders returned home after a 4-1 road trip with their slim playoff hopes still intact, and they took things to the Penguins again. Reasoner got New York on the board in the fast-moving first period by snapping in his first goal in 71 games -- dating to March 8, 2011. Crosby, playing in the ninth game of his second comeback of the season after recovering from concussion symptoms, was injured 1:43 into the second. Islanders defenceman Dylan Reese was trying to clear the puck out of the lower left corner in the New York end when he hit Crosby, who was standing a few feet away. Crosby stayed down on his stomach for about a minute before getting back up on his skates. He skated off toward the tunnel to the dressing room. He returned to the bench with 10:13 left in the period, and was back on the ice moments later. He returned to a 1-1 game after Dupuis scored to tie it at 8:37. But Okposo put New York back in front 7:59 later, and Bailey made it 3-1 when Jay Pandolfo dived at centre ice to knock a loose puck to him and send him in on a breakaway. Okposo struck again in the third, and Staal brought the Penguins within 4-2 with 11:40 remaining. NOTES: Bailey is on a five-game point streak (3 goals, 9 assists). He has seven goals and 10 assists in 15 games after missing two games because of a back injury. ... Penguins defenceman Kris Letang missed his second straight game and will also sit out Friday. ... Islanders goalie Evgeni Nabokov missed the game after sustaining a lower body injury at Pittsburgh. cheap jerseyswholesale jerseys ' ' '